Running remains one of our country’s most popular forms of exercise. This is no more evident than here in Boulder where our citizens have been consistently voted one of the fittest cities in America. Runners of all ages can be seen exercising on our city’s paths, trails, and sidewalks. In our previous blog post we...
Knee osteoarthritis is a common condition leading to pain and disability among many middle and older aged adults. While Physical Therapy remains a hallmark of conservative care, knee arthroscopic surgery continues to be one of the most common orthopedic surgeries. We have previously written about the inability of arthroscopic surgery to be shown more effective...
Patellofemoral pain, commonly referred to as runner’s knee, is one of the most common reasons patients seek care in Physical Therapy clinics. In short, the symptoms are caused by abnormal forces between the knee cap and thigh bone. The condition is effectively treated by Physical Therapy interventions including manual therapy, exercise, and gait retraining. The...
Knee replacements are a common and effective solution for end state knee osteoarthritis. Post operative Physical Therapy helps accelerate the recovery from this surgery by reducing pain, improving range of motion and leg strength after this surgical procedure. Research questions remain regarding the optimal frequency and intensity of post operative Physical Therapy visits. A recent...
The lunge is a very common exercise to strength the lower quarter. I commonly use the exercise to address lower quarter weakness, motor control or coordination impairments, and conditioning needs. Often patients will experience knee pain, either in the forward or backward leg while performing the movement. Changing the alignment of the trunk, hip, or...
In our previous posts we have detailed many factors leading to high injury rates experienced among runners. In our Boulder Physical Therapy practice, one of the most important factors to examine with any injured runner is their running gait. Most of us were instructed as beginners in our chosen sports with the exception of cycling...
In prior posts, we have discussed the importance of hip strengthening among runners. There is a strong correlation between hip weakness, especially the hip abductors, and knee pain. Studies have questioned if these strength impairments are present before pain develops or occur due to the onset of pain. In addition, some research has demonstrated runners...
In a previous post, we detailed the latest research on the importance of ankle mobility on knee mechanics. During weight bearing the shin, tibia, must be able to move forward over the fixed ankle and foot. Without adequate ankle flexibility and shin moved over the foot to the inside placing the knee at risk of...
Cycling is one of the most popular outdoor activities in Boulder. Cyclists we encounter in our Boulder Physical Therapy practice most commonly complain of pain on the front of their knee or anterior knee pain. Research shows 1 in 2 competitive cyclists have experienced this knee pain resulting in lost training and competitions in over...
Last year over 500,000 thousand arthroscopic knee surgeries (scopes) were performed in the Unites States making it one of the most common orthopedic surgical procedures. In a previous post we highlighted some of the evidence behind this surgery showing it is not superior to a sham or placebo surgery for degenerative meniscal tears. In addition,...